The Cardinals held their first day of voluntary OTAs. A few veterans were not present.
The Arizona Cardinals began Phase 3 of the offseason program on Wednesday when they held the first of six practices for voluntary OTAs (organized team activities). Players are not required to be there, as it is still the voluntary part of the offseason. But it is always noteworthy to see which players are not present or not participating.
On Wednesday, reporters were able to see the a portion of the first session of OTAs. It is the only one of the three this week that reporters could see.
Most players were present an participating. Some were not there and some were working on the side.
Who were they?
According to SI.com’s Donnie Druin, the following players were not seen on the field during the open part of practice:
- OL Kelvin Beachum
- OL Hjalte Froholdt
- DL Calais Campbell
- DL Dalvin Tomlinson
- OLB Josh Sweat
Other players were working on the side:
- OL Jonah Williams
- DL Walter Nolen
When players work to the side, it is usually injury-related. Williams is coming off a season-ending knee injury. Nolen, the Cardinals’ first-round pick in the 2025 draft, must be dealing with something minor.
As for the others not present, sometimes it is because players are not there or it is because they are hurt.
None of the players ended last season injured. Beachum (14th NFL season), Campbell (19th), Tomlinson 9th) and Sweat 8th) all have more than seven NFL seasons. Froholdt enters Year 7.
Head coach Jonathan Gannon can’t expect all the players to be there for voluntary work, but he wants to be aware.
“So some guys are in and out, but like where it’s at right now,” he told reporters before practice on Wednesday. “I will say this, “I always ask them because it is voluntary, just communicate with me. Our guys have done an excellent job communicating with me, so that’s good to see.”
So for now, there is no reason to be concerned. Beachum and Campbell do not have workout bonuses in their contract. Froholdt and Sweat each had $100,000 workout bonuses and Tomlinson has one worth $50,000, so they likley will be in the building for most of OTAs. Workout bonuses are earned based on attendance and the highest percentage allowed required for the bonus is under 85%. with five previous weeks of offseason workouts and eight practices remaining, we should expect them to be there on the field unless they are injured, and if they are injured already, that is another concern.
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